Srinagar, July 1: From July 1, 2025, a host of new regulations will take effect across key sectors such as railways, taxation, and banking—impacting millions of individuals and businesses nationwide. From mandatory Aadhaar for PAN applications and a rail fare hike, to revised Tatkal ticket rules, updated credit card charges, and a fuel ban on older vehicles in Delhi, these changes are part of a broader push to tighten compliance and advance digital processes.

PAN Card

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has mandated that Aadhaar verification is now required for all new Permanent Account Number (PAN) applications. Previously, applicants could use other identification documents like voter ID cards or birth certificates to obtain a PAN card.

Credit Card Rule Changes
Starting July 15, SBI Card will discontinue complimentary air accident insurance on select premium credit cards, including the ELITE and PRIME variants. Cardholders will no longer receive this benefit as part of their card package.

Additionally, SBI Card will revise the method used to calculate the Minimum Amount Due (MAD) on monthly statements, which could impact repayment structures for users.

From July 15, 2025, the MAD will be calculated thus: total GST + EMI amount + 100 percent of fees and charges + 100 percent of finance charges + 2 percent of outstanding dues (retail spends + cash advances) + any overlimit amount.

Until July 15, 2025, the MAD calculation is: total GST + EMI amount + 100 percent of fees and charges + the higher of either 5 percent of (finance charges + retail spends + cash advances) or 100 percent of finance charges + any overlimit amount.

Moreover, from july 1 HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank will also revise charges on select transactions, which could affect your spends.

HDFC Bank is revising charges on select credit card transactions. A 1 percent fee, capped at Rs 4,999 per transaction, will be applied to: rental transactions (1 percent of the transaction amount); online skill-based gaming expenditures above Rs 10,000 per month (1 percent of the total monthly spend); utility expenses (excluding insurance transactions) exceeding Rs 50,000 per month (1 percent of the total monthly spend).

ICICI Bank has revised several service charges, which will come into effect from July 1.

The bank has revised charges for ATM transactions. For ICICI Bank ATMs, the first five financial transactions each month will remain free, after which you’ll be charged Rs 23 per transaction; non-financial transactions will continue to be free.

Extra charges for ATM transactions that exceed the monthly free limit.
Revised IMPS (Immediate Payment Service) fees based on the transaction amount.
Higher charges for cash deposits and withdrawals at bank branches beyond free limits.

ITR deadline extended

CBDT has extended the deadline for filing income tax returns for the assessment year 2025-26 to September 15, from the original date of July 31. The extension implies that salaried individuals will get an additional 46 days to file returns.

However, you can initiate the process right away instead of waiting till September 15 to ensure that any glitches on the income tax portal due to heavy traffic closer to the due date does not affect you.

Railway Fare Hike from July 1
From July 1, 2025, Indian Railways will slightly increase passenger fares on certain train classes. Non-AC fares in Mail and Express trains will rise by 1 paise per kilometer, while AC class fares will go up by 2 paise per kilometer.

For instance, a 500 km journey in second class will now cost ₹5 more. The Railway Ministry says this minor hike is meant to help cover rising operating costs and improve services.

Aadhaar must for Railway tatkal tickets booking

Indian Railways has announced that from July 1, only verified users will be able to book Tatkal train tickets through the IRCTC website and app. Verification will be carried out using Aadhaar or other government-issued identification documents linked via DigiLocker.

Srinagar, July 1: In 2025, National Doctors’ Day will be observed on July 1. This day provides an opportunity for everyone to acknowledge and appreciate the hard work and commitment of doctors.

The tradition of National Doctors’ Day in India began on July 1, 1991, in honor of Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy, a distinguished physician and the second Chief Minister of West Bengal. Dr. Roy’s remarkable contributions to medical education and public health have left a lasting impact on the healthcare system in India. The Indian Medical Association (IMA) played a crucial role in establishing this observance to recognize the invaluable contributions of medical professionals nationwide.

This year’s theme, “Behind the Mask: Who Heals the Healers?” prompts a deeper reflection on the lives of doctors—urging to see beyond their strength and devotion to the unseen toll of caregiving. While physicians consistently prioritize the health of others, their own well-being is often overlooked. It urges society to look beyond their roles as caregivers and acknowledge their need for empathy, support, and well-being.

According to some studies doctors/ physicians are at high risk for extreme exhaustion, suicidal tendencies and mental health issues; history of physical, psychological; sleep deprivation; relationship problems; academic distress; and major life changes, physicians are also subject to job-specific stressors

Doctors are faced with death, illness, and injury every day. This can make them desensitized to such experiences and less opposed to their own injury or death. According to research they may also become overwhelmed by the sheer volume of death, illness, and injury and feel powerless against it.

Such experiences can take a significant mental and emotional toll on doctors. The prevailing culture of “zero tolerance for mistakes” adds immense pressure, demanding constant vigilance that can be mentally exhausting. Studies have shown that medical errors, coupled with overwhelming workloads, are closely linked to suicidal thoughts among physicians.

It is important to acknowledgment that doctors, too, need care—emotional, psychological, and institutional. Creating safe, supportive environments where they feel seen, heard, and valued can make a profound difference. Additionally, limiting access to lethal means can help prevent impulsive breakdowns driven by the overwhelming pressures physicians face.

Hyderabad, July 1: The death toll in the explosion in a pharmaceutical unit at Pashamylaram near Hyderabad mounted to 36 on Tuesday.

With some of the injured succumbing at hospitals and rescue workers recovering more bodies from debris, the death toll rose sharply since Monday.

The toll in the worst industrial disaster in Telangana may go up further as the rescue workers continued searches for the bodies in the debris of a three-storey building which collapsed under the impact of the blast.

A massive explosion had rocked Sigachi Industries Limited’s pharmaceutical factory at Pashamylaram industrial area in Sangareddy district, about 50 km from Hyderabad, on Monday morning.

The explosion in the Microcrystalline Cellulose (MCC) drying unit also left more than 30 workers injured. The condition of some of them is stated to be critical.

Personnel of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency (HYDRAA), Revenue and police continued clearing debris.

The majority of the victims were migrant workers from states like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Odisha. As many as 108 workers were at the factory at the time of the blast, which could be heard about five km away. The explosion triggered a huge fire, and 15 fire engines were used to douse the flames.

According to eye-witnesses, such was the impact of the explosion that workers were tossed in the air and fell several metres away. So far, four deceased have been identified as Jaganmohan, Ram Singh, Shashibhushan Kumar and Laganjeet.

As the bodies of some victims were blown to pieces or charred beyond recognition, the authorities were conducting DNA tests to establish their identity.

Health Minister Damodar Raja Narasimha and Labour Minister G. Vivek visited the accident site again on Tuesday morning. Director General of Police Jitender and senior officials also visited the spot and supervised the rescue and relief operation.

Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy will be visiting the accident site later in the day. He will also call on the injured at a government hospital. The state government appointed a high-powered committee to probe the disaster and its underlying causes.

The committee comprises the Chief Secretary, Special Chief Secretary (Disaster Management), Principal Secretary (Labour), Principal Secretary (Health) and Additional DGP (Fire Services). According to the Chief Minister’s Office, the panel would also make recommendations to prevent the recurrence of such accidents.

New York, July 01: The Pahalgam terror attack was an act of economic warfare meant to destroy tourism in Kashmir, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said, asserting that India has made it clear that it will not allow nuclear blackmail to prevent it from responding to terror emanating from Pakistan.

India has had a string of terrorist attacks over the years emanating from Pakistan and in the wake of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, there was a sentiment in the country that “enough is enough,” Jaishankar said on Monday.

His remarks came during a conversation with Newsweek CEO Dev Pragad hosted at the publication’s headquarters at One World Trade Centre near the 9/11 Memorial in Manhattan.

Jaishankar said that the Pahalgam attack “was an act of economic warfare. It was meant to destroy tourism in Kashmir, which was the mainstay of the economy. It was also meant to provoke religious violence because people were asked to identify their faith before they were killed.”

“So we decided that we cannot let terrorists function with impunity. The idea that they are on that side of the border, and that, therefore, sort of prevents retribution, I think, that’s a proposition that needs to be challenged and that is what we did,” he said.

Jaishankar is on an official visit to the US and will travel to Washington DC to participate in the Quad Foreign Ministers’ Meeting on Tuesday.

He commenced his visit by inaugurating an exhibition in the UN Headquarters titled ‘The Human Cost of Terrorism’, organised by the Permanent Mission of India to the UN.

He said that the terrorists based in Pakistan carrying out attacks against India do not operate in secret and these are terrorist organisations who have the “equivalent of their corporate headquarters in the populated towns of Pakistan.”

“Everybody knows what is the headquarters of organisation A and organisation B and those are the buildings, the headquarters that India destroyed” in Operation Sindoor, he said.

Operation Sindoor was launched to target terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in retaliation for the Pahalgam attack that killed 26 civilians and for which The Resistance Front (TRF), a front for Pakistan-based terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) had claimed responsibility.

“We are very clear there will be no impunity for terrorists, that we will not deal with them any longer as proxies and spare the government which supports and finances and in many ways, motivates them. We will not allow nuclear blackmail to prevent us from responding,” he said.

Jaishankar added that “we’ve also heard this for too long” that both India and Pakistan are nuclear countries and “therefore the other guy will come and do horrible things, but you mustn’t do anything because it gets the world worried.

“Now we are not going to fall for that. If he is going to come and do things, we are going to go there and also hit the people who did this. So no yielding to nuclear blackmail, no impunity to terrorists, no more free pass that they are proxies. And we will do what we have to do to defend our people,” Jaishankar said amid applause from the audience.

Referring to the exhibition at the UN highlighting the devastating toll of terrorist attacks across the globe, including those perpetrated by Pakistan-based terror entities, Jaishankar said India believes that “terrorism is actually a threat to everyone, that no country should use it as an instrument to further its policies because, at the end of the day, it comes back to bite everyone.”

He stressed that the message to the world has to be that there should be zero tolerance for terrorism, that there should be no circumstances, no excuse, no justification under which a country would allow, support, finance or sponsor terrorist acts.

He said India has been dealing with terrorism emanating from Pakistan for several decades but it actually started from the time of the country’s independence in 1947 when within a few months, terrorists were sent into Kashmir and were described as proxies and tribal invaders.

“And then soon enough, the Pakistani Army followed. So we have battled terrorism, really intensive, for the last four decades and we’ve had some horrific cases,” he said, as he referred to the 2001 Parliament and 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.

During a Q&A session that followed the conversation, Jaishankar was asked about President Donald Trump’s claim that he used trade to stop the recent conflict between India and Pakistan and whether that has affected trade negotiations between Delhi and Washington.

“No, I don’t think so. I think the trade people are doing what the trade people should be doing, which is negotiate with numbers and lines and products and do their trade-offs. I think they are very professional and very, very focused about it,” Jaishankar said.

He said that there is a national consensus in India that “our dealings with Pakistan are bilateral.

“And in this particular case, I can tell you that I was in the room when Vice President (JD) Vance spoke to Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi on the night of May 9, saying that the Pakistanis would launch a very massive assault on India if we did not accept certain things.

“And the Prime Minister was impervious to what the Pakistanis were threatening to do. On the contrary, he indicated that there would be a response from us. This was the night before and the Pakistanis did attack us massively that night, we responded very quickly thereafter,” Jaishankar said.

“And the next morning, Mr (Secretary of State Marco) Rubio called me up and said the Pakistanis were ready to talk. So I can only tell you from my personal experience what happened. The rest I leave to you,” he said.